Why The Tycoons Fear Hemp: From Drugs to Oil

PFlynn

New Member
Pot is NOT harmful to the human body or mind. Marijuana does NOT pose a threat to the general public. Marijuana is very much a danger to the oil companies, alcohol, tobacco industries and a large number of chemical corporations. Various big businesses, with plenty of dollars and influence, have suppressed the truth from the people.

The truth is if marijuana was utilized for its vast array of commercial products, it would create an industrial atomic bomb! Entrepreneurs have not been educated on the product potential of pot. The super rich have conspired to spread misinformation about an extremely versatile plant that, if used properly, would ruin their companies.

Where did the word 'marijuana' come from? In the mid 1930s, the M-word was created to tarnish the good image and phenomenal history of the hemp plant...as you will read. The facts cited here, with references, are generally verifiable in the Encyclopedia Britannica which was printed on hemp paper for 150 years:

* All schoolbooks were made from hemp or flax paper until the 1880s; Hemp Paper Reconsidered, Jack Frazier, 1974.

* It was LEGAL TO PAY TAXES WITH HEMP in America from 1631 until the early 1800s; LA Times, Aug. 12, 1981.

* REFUSING TO GROW HEMP in America during the 17th and 18th Centuries WAS AGAINST THE LAW! You could be jailed in Virginia for refusing to grow hemp from 1763 to 1769; Hemp in Colonial Virginia, G. M. Herdon.

George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and other founding fathers GREW HEMP; Washington and Jefferson Diaries. Jefferson smuggled hemp seeds from China to France then to America.

* Benjamin Franklin owned one of the first paper mills in America and it processed hemp. Also, the War of 1812 was fought over hemp. Napoleon wanted to cut off Moscow's export to England; Emperor Wears No Clothes, Jack Herer.

* For thousands of years, 90% of all ships' sails and rope were made from hemp. The word 'canvas' is Dutch for cannabis; Webster's New World Dictionary.

* 80% of all textiles, fabrics, clothes, linen, drapes, bed sheets, etc. were made from hemp until the 1820s with the introduction of the cotton gin.

* The first Bibles, maps, charts, Betsy Ross's flag, the first drafts of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were made from hemp; U.S. Government Archives.

* The first crop grown in many states was hemp. 1850 was a peak year for Kentucky producing 40,000 tons. Hemp was the largest cash crop until the 20th Century; State Archives.

* Oldest known records of hemp farming go back 5000 years in China, although hemp industrialization probably goes back to ancient Egypt.

* Rembrants, Gainsboroughs, Van Goghs as well as most early canvas paintings were principally painted on hemp linen.

* In 1916, the U.S. Government predicted that by the 1940s all paper would come from hemp and that no more trees need to be cut down. Government studies report that 1 acre of hemp equals 4.1 acres of trees. Plans were in the works to implement such programs; Department of Agriculture

* Quality paints and varnishes were made from hemp seed oil until 1937. 58,000 tons of hemp seeds were used in America for paint products in 1935; Sherman Williams Paint Co. testimony before Congress against the 1937 Marijuana Tax Act.

* Henry Ford's first Model-T was built to run on hemp gasoline and the CAR ITSELF WAS CONTRUCTED FROM HEMP! On his large estate, Ford was photographed among his hemp fields. The car, 'grown from the soil,' had hemp plastic panels whose impact strength was 10 times stronger than steel; Popular Mechanics, 1941.

* Hemp called 'Billion Dollar Crop.' It was the first time a cash crop had a business potential to exceed a billion dollars; Popular Mechanics, Feb., 1938.

* Mechanical Engineering Magazine (Feb. 1938) published an article entitled 'The Most Profitable and Desirable Crop that Can be Grown.' It stated that if hemp was cultivated using 20th Century technology, it would be the single largest agricultural crop in the U.S. and the rest of the world.

The following information comes directly from the United States Department of Agriculture's 1942 14-minute film encouraging and instructing 'patriotic American farmers' to grow 350,000 acres of hemp each year for the war effort:

'...(When) Grecian temples were new, hemp was already old in the service of mankind. For thousands of years, even then, this plant had been grown for cordage and cloth in China and elsewhere in the East. For centuries prior to about 1850, all the ships that sailed the western seas were rigged with hempen rope and sails. For the sailor, no less than the hangman, hemp was indispensable...

...Now with Philippine and East Indian sources of hemp in the hands of the Japanese...American hemp must meet the needs of our Army and Navy as well as of our industries...

...the Navy's rapidly dwindling reserves. When that is gone, American hemp will go on duty again; hemp for mooring ships; hemp for tow lines; hemp for tackle and gear; hemp for countless naval uses both on ship and shore. Just as in the days when Old Ironsides sailed the seas victorious with her hempen shrouds and hempen sails. Hemp for victory!'

Certified proof from the Library of Congress; found by the research of Jack Herer, refuting claims of other government agencies that the 1942 USDA film 'Hemp for Victory' did not exist.

Hemp cultivation and production do not harm the environment. The USDA Bulletin #404 concluded that hemp produces 4 times as much pulp with at least 4 to 7 times less pollution. From Popular Mechanics, Feb. 1938:

'It has a short growing season...It can be grown in any state...The long roots penetrate and break the soil to leave it in perfect condition for the next year's crop. The dense shock of leaves, 8 to 12 feet above the ground, chokes out weeds.
...hemp, this new crop can add immeasurably to American agriculture and industry.'

In the 1930s, innovations in farm machinery would have caused an industrial revolution when applied to hemp. This single resource could have created millions of new jobs generating thousands of quality products. Hemp, if not made illegal, would have brought America out of the Great Depression.

William Randolph Hearst (Citizen Kane) and the Hearst Paper Manufacturing Division of Kimberly Clark owned vast acreage of timberlands. The Hearst Company supplied most paper products. Patty Hearst's grandfather, a destroyer of nature for his own personal profit, stood to lose billions because of hemp.

In 1937, Dupont patented the processes to make plastics from oil and coal. Dupont's Annual Report urged stockholders to invest in its new petrochemical division. Synthetics such as plastics, cellophane, celluloid, methanol, nylon, rayon, Dacron, etc., could now be made from oil. Natural hemp industrialization would have ruined over 80% of Dupont's business.

THE CONSPIRACY

Andrew Mellon became Hoover's Secretary of the Treasury and Dupont's primary investor. He appointed his future nephew-in-law, Harry J. Anslinger, to head the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs.

Secret meetings were held by these financial tycoons. Hemp was declared dangerous and a threat to their billion dollar enterprises. For their dynasties to remain intact, hemp had to go. These men took an obscure Mexican slang word: 'marihuana' and pushed it into the consciousness of America.

MEDIA MANIPULATION

A media blitz of 'yellow journalism' raged in the late 1920s and 1930s. Hearst's newspapers ran stories emphasizing the horrors of marihuana. The menace of marihuana made headlines. Readers learned that it was responsible for everything from car accidents to loose morality.

Films like 'Reefer Madness' (1936), 'Marihuana: Assassin of Youth' (1935) and 'Marihuana: The Devil's Weed' (1936) were propaganda designed by these industrialists to create an enemy. Their purpose was to gain public support so that anti-marihuana laws could be passed.

Examine the following quotes from 'The Burning Question' aka REEFER MADNESS:

a violent narcotic.

acts of shocking violence.

incurable insanity.

soul-destroying effects.

under the influence of the drug he killed his entire family with an ax.

more vicious, more deadly even than these soul-destroying drugs (heroin, cocaine) is the menace of marihuana!

Reefer Madness did not end with the usual 'the end.' The film concluded with these words plastered on the screen: TELL YOUR CHILDREN.

In the 1930s, people were very naive; even to the point of ignorance. The masses were like sheep waiting to be led by the few in power. They did not challenge authority. If the news was in print or on the radio, they believed it had to be true. They told their children and their children grew up to be the parents of the baby-boomers.

On April 14, 1937, the Prohibitive Marihuana Tax Law or the bill that outlawed hemp was directly brought to the House Ways and Means Committee. This committee is the only one that can introduce a bill to the House floor without it being debated by other committees. The Chairman of the Ways and Means, Robert Doughton, was a Dupont supporter. He insured that the bill would pass Congress.

Dr. James Woodward, a physician and attorney, testified too late on behalf of the American Medical Association. He told the committee that the reason the AMA had not denounced the Marihuana Tax Law sooner was that the Association had just discovered that marihuana was hemp.

Few people, at the time, realized that the deadly menace they had been reading about on Hearst's front pages was in fact passive hemp. The AMA understood cannabis to be a MEDICINE found in numerous healing products sold over the last hundred years.

In September of 1937, hemp became illegal. The most useful crop known became a drug and our planet has been suffering ever since.

Congress banned hemp because it was said to be the most violence-causing drug known. Anslinger, head of the Drug Commission for 31 years, promoted the idea that marihuana made users act extremely violent. In the 1950s, under the Communist threat of McCarthyism, Anslinger now said the exact opposite. Marijuana will pacify you so much that soldiers would not want to fight.

Today, our planet is in desperate trouble. Earth is suffocating as large tracts of rain forests disappear. Pollution, poisons and chemicals are killing people. These great problems could be reversed if we industrialized hemp. Natural biomass could provide all of the planet's energy needs that are currently supplied by fossil fuels. We have consumed 80% of our oil and gas reserves. We need a renewable resource. Hemp could be the solution to soaring gas prices.



Source: Helium.com
Copyright: 2008 Helium.com
Contact: Why the tycoons fear hemp: From drugs to oil - Food & Agriculture - Helium
Website: Helium - Where Knowledge Rules
 
Excellent article, Pete!
 
Absolutely amazing. I wish every member of the US government was forced to sit and read this article and learn a bit of history that most of them probably don't realize.
 
hello,,,,,THE U.S. NEEDS AN INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION,,AND THAT REVOLUTION IS INDUSTRIAL HEMP----$$$$$$$$$$--for everyone,,,,and free home-grown,,,,:peace:---f.g.s.---aka---infoman
 
SUPPORT VOTEHEMP.org , if everyone who read this article made a donation to this organization , they would build enough resources to litigate state by state to legalize hemp. North Dakota being one of the 1st to have votehemp as a partner. so yeah that's where it's gotta happen, if people are fed up with the bullshit , we need to litigate state by state and educate the senators and governors. I have a 300 acre farm in ks, hemp will be my main crop when it's legal, of course there will have to be processing plants in place to process the hemp , but I think we should convert ETHANOL plants to methanol (hemp) processing plants. But hemp will replace just about everything.:smokin:
Great article we need to get the details out there.
 
I think we should farm Hemp for everything, but fuel. I have ten aces in TX lol, but if Hemp does come out fully to farm, and you do start to farm Hemp no matter how old I am, I'm helping you farm hemp! Just put me up in the barn! Mater fact, no pay till a profit, just feed me and smoke2 lol

This article forgot to mention timber, its one of the largest conglomerates that would be obsolete if hemp were legal. Ethanol from corn produces more pollution than reg fuel. We are trading h20 for corn to feed our cars and cows. JEESus.
 
Because, why waste hemp for fuel? We have to start with alternatives. The oil companies don't want you to know. Same like BP keeps those adds running they are looking into alternatives and spent $25.000.000 that's million that's it, that's all??? 25 million last year ohhhhhhhh they are so great and the public buys into it and keeps buying gas cause oh, our gas companies are finally doing something...lol

They hide the fact they rule the whole energy corp by 90% so you think well they spent 25 million. To day that's about 14 million by way of the worth of the dollar. Now if they spent 25 billion, then we're talking they are trying to change.

Hemp in everything else is excellent, clothing, books, hair products, paper, everything. Keep it for shoes and etc. Throw away corn for fuel and introduce Hydrogen. Without the the explosive matieral, it is not dangerous.

Put it this way, they said the same about gas in a car, in 1895 too dangerous, Hydrogen is less dangerous in a tank, fuel cell, thank you gas tank today. You hit, you can blow up in either, but most chances you'll be burnt in a gas, and hydrogen goes into nothing but air. Gas produces Carbon-Diox. and Hydro produces water.

Netherlands is all run Geo-termo natraul green earth homes, hydro cars Ice Land too I believe, our country will start to go hydrogen very soon, so save hemp for other really good things.

Trees will remain, plus we will build with other natural materials.

WASTING hemp for fuel is illogical.. 1st 1000 gallns of methanol can be made from 1 acre of hemp, wasting hemp on fuel makes no sense at all. Hemp is best for fuel since we can get that areage, also hemp takes hardly any water, waay less than corn, and oil drilling is becoming obsolete, i totally disagree with why waste hemp for fuel, it's not a waste, that's lke saying why waste ganja for getting high. We are not the netherlands either. Save hemp? ??? WHAT??? when hemp becomes legal , there will be dedicated processes for each aspect of hemo, i.e : hemp for autos, hemp for food, hemp for building .. when hemp is legal there will be plentiful hemp , so it wont be a waste... it will be dedicated to each of it's manufacturing aspects. It's would be a waste and is a waste to NOT use hemp for fuel..! Do you know how many farmers would rather grow hemp than any other crop? also hemp fuel would fuel al the farm machinery used to plant, grow and harvest hemp , thus it would not be a waste. THere is going to be soooo many more things we havnt thought of with hemp , there will be innovations in the HEMP industry. There will never be a "WASTE" factor of hemp since it can be used in any level of the process.
 
You have your opinion, I have mine, i disagree with you, why? because like corn, that's the same thing they thought, Hey we'll grow corn for food, we'll grow corn for fuel, now prices shot up everywhere and a shortage.

Hydro pushes away gas stations converts them to hydrogen.

We can only grow so much of one thing, and they are other needs. If hemp is grown for products and 7 million gals. a day for needed fuel in the USA alone, that is why I disagree, we won't have enough and we'll suffer on other food products.

Look at soy, two examples of take over one thing for another. Moderation is key, start with limited amounts of growth for Hemp, like we do here in California, as time permits and control, we can add more supply, but keeping a balance is a must.

Your wrong, I'm right...lol:cheesygrinsmiley:

IM wrong and you're right? That's quite conceded , but since your the leading scientific researcher on HEMP for biomass i suppose we all should bow to you. Or you should be fired. WE cannot compare HEMP to soy or corn,or anything else, 1st there hasn't been an economy set up based on HEMP alone yet, so where's your facts. Also if farmers grew hemp there would be more than enough to go around. Oh but your from cali so we should ALL listen to cali..yeah good ole arnie has done well for the hemp industry. lol. but yet it's legal in Germany.
I guess that just makes everyone wrong then.

Also you say "you have your opinion i have mine", mines as a matter of fact, but you just contradicted yourself by saying your right and I'm wrong. lol. DUDe, like, dude like go bock ta te vally dude. "WE CAN ONLY GROW SO MUCH OF ONE THING"? you said... hAH, this is a false statement,back in the 1700' here in america , you could pay taxes with hemp, it was illegal to not grow hemp as it was needed for the wars. You don't get that HEMP will produce it's own economy. Are you a farmer? I am.
That makes me right and you wrong ,,, lol.;)
 
Until we create bio-batteries, fuel cells and all hybrids that use batteries will be a horrible solution anyway. The chemicals required to make these technologies is crazy. Batteries are already one of the worlds largest waste issues.

Bio-fuel can be used now, with little changes to current engine design. Diverse crops are a boom for all farmers, and a rotation of hemp will do fields good.

The reason food costs as much as it does has as much to due with allowing profit from it, as well as high costs for fuel and fertilizers. If food was all a non-profit organization, everyone would eat, and we would still have more then enough open land to enjoy.

Back in the 80's, farmers sold their land off because they couldn't afford to use it and pay taxes on it. Now that they know they can make money, they want to buy that land back. The banks have raised land prices to the point of breaking.

So don't blame bio-fuels or ethanol, we have plenty. The reason we suffer is because greedy people are demanding premium prices to sell farmers back their land that to this day goes unused. All agricultural land is heavily guarded by corporations and the banking system. Without controlling production, you cannot control the prices. So they control production with any means available to them.
 
:clap:
everyone should get on board and send copies of this information to their legislators and include any personal experiences as well. The following is a letter I sent to both of my California Senators.

Dear Senator:

I never believed I would be writing this letter. I am a retired sergeant from a California Sheriff's Dept. after 28 years of service. Sadly, my retirement was a forced medical one because of an on duty traffic accident caused by a wrong way driver. I am a long time Republican with conservative political views.
The purpose of this letter is to give you my views on the medical, recreational, and industrial use of marijuana.
Medical marijuana legality was passed by the electorate of the state of California in 1996; however, the federal government does not recognize the right of medical marijuana patients to grow or obtain legally the medicine they need. In my particular case I suffer from arthritis, muscle spasms, and chronic pain from neck to hips due to the on duty traffic accident and another one occurring after I retired. I was using traditional prescription drugs to treat these symptoms for sixteen years. Many of the drugs had side effects ranging from; stomach and intestinal problems, decrease in alertness, and lethargy.
In May of this year, a friend who has similar medical problems convinced me that I should try medical marijuana. Being the law abiding citizen and an ex-deputy sheriff, I decided to do it as legally as possible. I made an appointment with a Dr. that practices in this field. After an interview with the Dr. involving the examination of my medical history, my general health and a discussion of my symptoms, and past treatment, he issued a prescription for medical marijuana. I then went to a medical marijuana dispensary and only after having my prescription verified, purchased 1/8 of an ounce of marijuana.
The most persistent problem I had in the past was not being able to sleep well at night. The pain and muscle spasms often caused me to wake up as many as ten times a night to change position. The level of past prescription drugs, needed for relief, always left me logy and less than alert for hours after awakening the next morning. The Dr. suggested I use the marijuana primarily to battle this problem and suggested I use it just before I was ready for bed in the evening.
I have to admit, my first experience was astounding. Shortly after using some marijuana, (two puffs from a pipe) I felt a wave of relaxation start at my neck, run across my shoulders and down my back to my waist. The only way I can describe it, is to liken it to removing an extremely heavy coat you have been wearing for a long time. When I went to bed that night, I slept through the night for the first time in 16 years without the use of the "side effect" causing prescription drugs. I only use marijuana just prior to bed and it has enabled me to sleep better than I have in years. In addition, I awake alert and without the usual prescription drug hangover side effects.
The problem I and many others are facing presently is the availability of safe, legal medical marijuana. The federal government is raiding medical marijuana dispensaries and has the ability to confiscate property if a person grows his own supply. This forces medical marijuana patients to buy marijuana from illegal drug sellers. The quality and purity of the marijuana purchased in this manner is questionable and the money goes to support illegal activity, gangs and possibly terrorism. The terrorism connection has been confirmed in recently acquired documents through the freedom of information act; documents that confirm that the DEA and office of Homeland Security have made a connection between illegal drug smugglers and money laundering for the narcotics trade and terrorist organizations.
I feel the solution has to be to pass a national law preventing the federal government or its agencies from interfering with state laws allowing the use, dispensing, or cultivation of marijuana for medical purposes.
Marijuana is presently listed as a schedule 1 drug. This classification is wholly undeserved. Schedule 1 narcotics must meet the following criteria;
- The drug or other substance has a high potential for abuse.
- The drug or other substance has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.
- There is a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug or other substance under medical supervision.
I myself have used medical marijuana for 11 months so far and have no desire to increase my usage and have not experienced any craving for more or had any desire to use any other drugs. I am a tobacco user and the addictive nature of cigarette smoking is astronomical, whereas I have not experienced any addictive component to using Marijuana.
Marijuana having no accepted medical use in the United States is absolutely ridiculous and purely a political opinion. Many qualified and honest doctors in the United States are adamant that it does have medical benefits and patients like me support that fact. Present laws prevent any true medical studies that might make a case for the medical use of Marijuana.
As far as the safety of Marijuana goes, there has never, I repeat never, been a verified death solely from the use of marijuana in all of the history of civilization. Statistics purported to show otherwise always include the use of marijuana in combination with more dangerous drugs or an existing serious medical condition. If someone tries to tell you differently, ask them to supply a death certificate listing marijuana as the sole cause of death. This is true historically even when marijuana has not been used under medical supervision.
To put the danger of marijuana in perspective here are some verifiable statistics:
Aspirin and other over the counter pain relievers such as Ibuprofen, Motrin, and Naprosyn cause between 300 and 500 deaths a year even when taken as directed. One study estimates over 16,000 deaths a year from intestinal bleeding caused by these drugs
Over the counter cold remedies when abused have caused deaths nation wide recently.
Over the counter sleep aids and motion sickness remedies also can cause serious medical problems or death when abused.
Alcohol, legal but taxed heavily, can and has been the sole cause of death in too many cases to count. This is usually found in binge drinking or during drinking contests by young people in our society.
Other drugs included in schedule 1, do cause deaths solely from their use.
Let me reiterate one more time; throughout all of history, there has never been a verifiable death solely attributable to marijuana use or even a so called life threatening overdose from marijuana alone.
The federal government, by continuing to take the action it does, is violating state and individual rights. California voters have decisively shown their desire to allow marijuana to be used medically. Preventing medical marijuana users from obtaining a safe supply by enforcing federal laws against cultivation or dispensing, is absurd and violates the desires and rights of the people of California.
Since I began to use marijuana for medical purposes, I have met others who are also medical marijuana users. They are not "pot heads". They come from all walks of life and professions. They are not part of the "drug culture and only desire to be able to legally obtain marijuana for their medical problems, including the following:
Marijuana is prescribed as an appetite enhancer and is used to mitigate nausea and vomiting for Aids patients or for patients in chemo therapy
Marijuana is prescribed as an analgesic for pain from arthritis, or other physical problems
Marijuana is prescribed as a sleep aid as in my case
Marijuana is prescribed to mitigate problems associated with glaucoma
Marijuana is being considered by the Oregon Health Division in the treatment of ADH/ racing brain syndrome, a condition that resists other ADH treatments.
Marijuana is prescribed to mitigate spasticity and speech disorders associated with multiple sclerosis.
Many argue that there are other prescription drugs available to treat these conditions. In my case, most were not as effective as marijuana and caused unpleasant side effects that I have not experienced with marijuana. The cost of approved prescription drugs should also be taken into consideration. My use of marijuana is minimal compared to the cost of prescription drugs needed at times to relieve my symptoms and is free if I grow it.
Legally growing marijuana, (if I was), for my own medical use, meets my needs and saves me a significant amount of money. It might be interesting to examine if pharmaceutical companies oppose the medical use of marijuana.
Many anti-medical marijuana advocates make the argument that the belief marijuana can mitigate the health problems listed above is purely anecdotal and is not supported by true medical studies. Here lies another problem; the federal government claims it has the sole authority to control the cultivation of marijuana. If it has that sole authority, it basically controls any legal supply of marijuana. Does the federal government allow any standardized type of marijuana to be supplied to any authentic medical research organizations to determine if the health benefits of marijuana are true or not? If the federal government will not do this, it is basically admitting its stand is purely political in nature and they have no interest in determining if marijuana is beneficial. In fact they may have a vested interest in not finding out if this is true.
Once again, I feel the solution is to pass a national law preventing the federal government or its agencies from interfering in any way with state laws allowing the use, dispensing, or cultivation of marijuana for medical purposes. Technically at this time, a person could be charged with a felony, have his home seized, and be imprisoned for having a one foot tall live marijuana plant with a single bud, growing on his patio.

I am writing this letter primarily to advocate laws allowing the cultivation, distribution, and use of marijuana for medical purposes. There is another area that does need some serious reflection and that is legalizing marijuana entirely. In reality marijuana is the largest cash crop in the U.S. today, estimated at $113 billion a year. That is $113 billion going into the pockets of drug gangs, organized crime, and possibly terrorist groups. If it was legalized, taxed and controlled like alcohol it would save an estimated $41.8 billion in law enforcement and lost revenues costs per year. It would also get the Mexican Mafia and their marijuana farms out of our national forests and other public lands. Prohibition of alcohol was a mistake. I believe it is time we seriously began looking at decriminalizing marijuana. When simple arrests for marijuana possession out number all those for violent crimes in the U.S. combined, it is time to rethink this failed federal drug policy. (Also read articles from the Marijuana Policy Project)
The history of the move that initially caused the banning of marijuana is rife with falsehoods and exaggerations that have been exposed time after time.
Two specific instances were used over and over to convince the public and congress to outlaw marijuana. One was an incident describing a son under the influence of marijuana beating his mother to death with a frying pan. The other was an incident of another son under the influence of marijuana hacking his parents and other family members to death with an axe; even after both incidents were found to be the result of severe psychological problems and not due to the influence of marijuana, anti-marijuana groups and individuals continued to falsely use them in their efforts to ban marijuana. The American Medical Association, which would likely have argued the medicinal benefits of marijuana, was notified only two days prior to the hearing. Their representative, Dr. William Woodward, denounced the hearings as being rooted in tabloid sensationalism, and demanded an explanation for the secrecy involved. Anslinger ignored Woodward's vociferous objections -- when before the vote he was asked by Congress if the AMA agreed that the bill should be passed, a member of Anslinger's committee replied, "Yes, they are in complete agreement."
When the mayor of New York, Fiorello LaGuardia commissioned a study of marijuana use in his city during the 1930s, the study's results were in direct opposition of the claims put forward by opponents of marijuana. The study was viciously attacked and swept under the rug. Racism, industrial competition, and competition for agricultural products and their uses were the driving forces leading to the ban of even industrial hemp. The 1930s marked the emerging market of industrial hemp and this emerging industry was in direct competition with lumber companies, newspapers and others who had large investments in wood pulp as the source for paper and newsprint. Oil and chemical companies, and the cotton industry were also threatened by the emerging industrial hemp industry. Many of the products produced by these industries can be produced from industrial hemp.
Opponents to marijuana used scare tactics claiming Hispanics and blacks under the influence of marijuana would go insane, commit violent crimes and rape white women. Jazz musicians were singled out by, Harry j. Anslinger, the newly appointed head of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics. Anslinger hated jazz and made every effort to gain publicity by high profile arrests of musicians and actors caught using or possessing marijuana.
The whole war on marijuana has become a billion dollar industry in itself. The DEA and other law enforcement agencies depend on the furtherance of this war to justify their budgets and gain even more funding. The legalization of marijuana would destroy the illegal marijuana smuggling cartels and drastically reduce the money allocated to the DEA. Legalization would also destroy an important source of money now exposed as important to terrorist organizations. Gangs and criminal organizations that depend on the continued illegality of marijuana would be devastated.
I believe that an honest and scientific study needs to be conducted that would determine once and for all, the medical benefits of marijuana. It should also determine the effects of recreational marijuana use. Marijuana effects both short term (hours) and long term ( months or years) should be compared to the known effects of alcohol use in areas addiction, of productivity, safety in driving and operating other equipment.
I am sending this letter anonymously for obvious reasons. It seems recently that correspondence, in way too many instances, somehow ends up in the wrong hands. It is a sad state of affairs when a citizen of the United States fears his federal government when merely writing a letter to his senator.
Anon.

P.S. In studies allowed by the government for medical marijuana, the cannabis supplied by the Government was the lowest grade when compared to 48 other samples. So is the government purposely trying to sabotage these studies?
 
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